Spotlight On Jackie Wilson: Mr Excitement (Various Artists)

• Track Listing

The musical journey begins in 1953 a few weeks after Wilson's nineteenth birthday when he officially replaced Clyde McPhatter in Billy Ward's Dominoes (see KM-CD-94 Clyde McPhatter The Voice of R&B). Ward was a vocal coach, writer, arranger, and producer who led the Dominoes group, which comprised of only the pick of the best musicians available. From his tenure with the Dominoes showcased are six of Wilsons up-tempo vocal performances; You Can't Keep A Good Man Down, Above Jacob's Ladder, A Little Lie, Bobby Sox Baby, Learning The Blues, and St Louis Blues. The next stage in Wilson's career found him scaling the music charts as a solo performer and gaining instant fame with Reet Petite (The Finest Girl You Ever Want To Meet). Wilson's recordings from the golden years of 1957 to 1963 benefited from professional arrangements and his recordings crossed over into mainstream pop music charts. The classics on Mr Excitement include; the jiving tempos of Come Back To Me, Why Can't You Be Mine, (So Many) Cute Little Girls, and Love Train. His stroll rockers attract the ladies onto the dance floor like a magnet; Come On And Love Me, Baby, I Know I'll Always Be In Love With You, and from 1963 his pop hit Baby Workout. From here onwards his music had a cross over style amalgamation of rhythm & blues and the newly appearing soul music known as The New Breed. To bring the excitement to a thundering close there are three titles on which Wilson duets with Linda Hopkins, the gospel rocker Do Lord, I Found Love, and Say I Do. The album is compiled by Dee Jay Mark Armstrong and topped off with the best possible sound quality possible from our mastering team at our El Paso, Texas, Studio. The album sleeves are made from top-quality eco-friendly cardboard and lavishly decorated by design artist and working musician Urban Zotel. The album is ideal for Dee Jays to fill the dance floor with, and for home listening or while cruising around.

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